Apple Blossoms
by 0-Kelly-0
Summary: “Why are you doing this?” She heard his voice as clear as day through the others, and she blushed faintly. “Because you deserve it.” Her hand hit the table, and the crowd went up in cheers. EstherXIon :Rating set to change:


Chapter I - Purple Hyachinth

"In the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit," Esther said softly, her hand making the trail of a cross as it traveled from her forehead to below to her breasts, and to each side of her chest. She clasped her hands together in prayer, kneeling beside her bed. "Please forgive me father, for I am about to sin. It is my duty to protect this country, and to lead it with my strength, but I have to do this for myself.

She peeped one eye open, just to see if maybe He'd tell her that He was listening, but no such luck. She snapped her eyes shut again and continued. "I hope that I can be forgiven for what I am about to do. I will always care for my country, but I will always care for my friends as well. I need to know that they are ok."

Well that just sounded selfish, even to her own ears. "Please bless all those of this world, Humans and Methuselahs alike," She added quickly, "And let them someday live together as one people, side by side with no hostilities towards race. Amen."

She rose soundlessly, the faint hum of Sister Kate's hologram coming from outside her bedroom door. They would never let her go if she told them. Esther held her breath as she slipped on a dark maroon jacket that fell below her knees, covering her old nun outfit, and added a scarf for good measure. She couldn't wear the new clothes. She would be too obvious in town if she wore something extravagant. She just needs to know that they're ok so she can sleep at night.

She hadn't seen Father for three weeks, and Sir Ion for a month or two. It made her feel nervous and jumpy. She had always been one who needed contact with others to feel ok, and without the two men that she had gotten to know best, it was running her ragged. Father Nightroad hadn't even told her goodbye.

She opened the window slowly; the creak it made becoming drawn out until it sounded like a dieing animal was being put out of its misery. She stopped as soon as it was open, waiting for someone to rush in and stop her, to yell that she wasn't to leave. But nothing happened. A moment passed, and Esther let out the breath she didn't know she had been holding. She felt the adrenaline pumping through her, like she was doing something forbidden. Like a child with their hand in the cookie jar.

She swung one foot outside the window, and turned her head to get one last look at her room before she left. "I'll be back." She whispered, to clear her consciousness, and jumped from the two story window to the ground that waited below her.

She landed with a thud, her bent knees taking the brunt end of the impact, but she still felt the vibrations through her body. Without skipping a beat, she turned and ran, the cold night air biting at her exposed face. She flipped the hood of her coat up, her breath causing small puffs of frozen air to form around her face for half seconds before disappearing.

Being the Queen, she knows the secret exit to the Vatican in case there was an invasion and she needed to be evacuated. She _also_ happened to know that there was no alarm system to this exit, in case the enemy had already hacked into their central controls. If it did, then it would give away their position, so it would be pointless in the first place. The only flaw in this was that someone could get in or out with anyone knowing. That is, if they could find it.

When she got behind the fountain, and pushed through the vines, Esther pulled back on the third stone from the bottom, a slate slightly darker than the rest. There was the creak of metal and the wall opened slightly so that a single person could fit through the bottom while on their hands and knees.

She got down crawled through the small opening, the dirt feeling hard and dry beneath her fingertips. Within seconds of her reaching the other side, it had shut again.

It took longer to get out of it on this side. After fighting her way through a thorny bush, and going around a fat tree, she finally spotted the road. She sighed contently, and wrapped her coat tighter around her small frame to protect herself from the cold.

Rumor said that they were here, in Rome. She frowned slightly at the thought of them being so close, but not coming to see her. So she knew that they were here (hopefully) but not where to find them. Rome was pretty big, it's not like she could just check ever hotel in the area, but she had a good hunch that he was staying the hotel on La strada del Prete. Father Nightroad had told her all about it once when he was describing a mission that he had been on.

The road seemed long and cold, probably about a forty-five minute walk to reach the hotel, but it was well worth it in Esther's eyes. She pushed open the door and a creak similar to the one her window had made greeted her. It was dingy and dark, not really how Father had explained it, but she didn't really expect it to be. She was hoping to be greeted by some kind of warmth, but it was only slightly warmer than the freezing temperatures outside.

A man was standing behind a desk, one of the only real pieces of furniture in the room other than a worn-out coffee table and the staircase, and he glanced up at her from the book he was reading when she entered. He looked exhausted, but his blue eyes danced at the sight of a customer. "Good evening miss, it's a little late to be out tonight, don't you think? But what can I do for you?"

Esther smiled politely, pulling her hood tighter around her face. "I was wondering if you could tell me if someone was staying in your hotel. A man by the name of Abel Nightroad. He is accompanied by a younger man as well, Ion Fortuna."

He scratched his head thoughtfully. "Nightroad…Nightroad…" He snapped his fingers and pointed at Esther, "The priest, right?" She nodded her head enthusiastically. "He was here with that blond kid." She noted the past tense and her face dropped. He noticed this and continued, "No, they're still around, just not here right now. I think they only head about the city at night. Probably at the bar just down the street getting something to eat." He thrust his thumb to his left to demonstrate his point.

"A…bar?" Esther asked slowly, the words tasting funny on her dry tongue.

His face turned to look concerned. "It's really no place for a lady to be," He told her, "You're welcome to stay here until they come back, although I'm not sure when that'll be. Sometimes they're gone all night."

"No no," Esther said hurriedly, "I'll go there now and find them. Thank you for your help."

He looked reluctant to let her go, like he would hold her here himself, but then halfhearted agreed, and she headed out the door without a backwards glance.

"Um, excuse me," Esther said shyly to the bar tender when she had reached the bar several building down from the hotel. He turned to her and raised an eyebrow at seeing such a fine looking girl in a place like this. "I'm looking for someone, maybe you could help me."

"You'll have to speak up." He all but yelled, wiping his hands on the front of his pants, leaving a wet greasy mark there. The place was packed, but the mass of bodies pressing in on her was defiantly warmer than being out on the street.

It was a small bar, but Esther could only make out the tops of peoples heads through the haze of cigar smoke and the booming of some loud music. "I'm looking for two people," She raised her voice to match his, "Father Nightroad and Sir Ion."

His face brightened. "The priest and the kid? They're the reason for my step up in business! Are you a friend of theirs?" She nodded slowly. "Wonderful!" His voice boomed. "You should find those two over in the middle by their table. I'm sure Ion's at it again!"

She blinked slowly, not sure how to feel about knowing that they were so _close_. But the real question was what they were doing here that brought this big of a crowd. She was afraid to ask. She thanked the man, but she didn't think he heard her, so she just started pushing her way to the center, mumbling "Excuse me." ever few seconds.

She heard a grunt from the center where people where crowded, and a man struggling for breath. She pushed again, but the crowd was thick. "You still have a chance, don't give up." She heard his voice and froze.

"You dirty liar." The struggling voice responded.

"I guess so. If you really want to give up, then there isn't a point to this anymore." She pushed through the crowd at the same moment that Ion slammed the man opposite him's hand to the table. The crowd roared with whoops and hollers.

She watched, frozen, as Father Nightroad took money from the man, and held Ion's hand into the air in victory. More cheers followed. "Our arm wrestling champion!" Father announced, and Esther could see a smirk pull at the corner of Ion's mouth.

They still hadn't seen her. She was just to the side of them, but it wasn't as if they were looking for her. She watched as Father bent down to whisper into Ion's ear, but she still heard the words. "Just a few more weeks of this, and we'll have enough to head out." They needed money. That's why they were still here.

She fingered the bag of euro in her coat pocket, and came to a decision. She pulled her scarf around her face so it covered her mouth and buttoned up the front of her coat, covering her clothes. She tucked her hair behind her ears, and the hood covered it. She took out the bag and tossed it to the table, the loud chunk echoing in the now deathly silent bar.

Ion raised the eyebrow above his blood red eye, and pulled the string on the bag, letting the hundreds spill out onto the table. He turned to her, and his eyes showed no recognition. "Is this a joke?" He asked, his voice deathly quiet. Everyone seemed to be holding their breath, waiting to see what happened between this stranger and their champion.

"Are you willing to defend that title?" She asked, her voice muffled and not recognizable under the wool of her scarf. He met her eyes, and she immediately diverted them. She'd have to be careful here, or they'd recognize her. She had already made up her mind of what to do.

"I can't arm wrestle a woman." He said softly, his eyes trying to catch hers. She knew that she was already suspicious even trying this, but if he recognized her, he'd never take the money. Father Nightroad just shrugged, noticing that the money would be more than enough to help them start out on their mission

She sat down opposite him, placing her elbow on the table, bracing it with her other hand. Within a moment, she felt his hand placed loosely into her own, the cold skin feeling oddly comforting to her. She could feel his gaze penetrating her, looking into her heart and soul. "Do I know you?"

She tightened her grip, focusing on a knot in the wood of the table. "Should we start?"

"You realize that we are not responsible if he hurts you, correct?" Father Nightroad spoke to her, and she nodded, but Ion frowned.

"I'm not going to hurt her." He bit out, but Father just placed his hand over their two clasped hands.

"Begin," Father said simply, and she felt Ion's hand tighten in her own, but they remained directly upright.

"Don't hold back on me," She whispered, pulling his hand a fraction to the left before they were straightened again to the upright position, his strength matching hers perfectly. She felt herself starting to panic. He couldn't just win and take the money, could he! His eyes were on her, but she didn't meet them. She could faintly hear the chant of the bystanders, but she channeled them out.

"Why are you doing this?" She heard his voice as clear as day through the others, and she blushed faintly.

"Because you deserve it." Her hand hit the table, and the crowd went up in cheers. His hand remained her own, his eyes searching her face.

"Your hand is warm." He said softly, before removing his hand and standing. Esther gasped, and met his eyes. He knew it was her. "We're leaving Abel." He said roughly, his eyes still holding Esther's in a gaze that she couldn't place.

"Y-Yes." Father Nightroad said hurriedly, grabbing the bag of money. "Thank you miss," He said happily, just as clueless as she remembered him.

They made their way through the crowd, and the throng of people started to thin. She just sat there, in shock. The bartender came up to her a moment later and she snapped out of her daze, and looked at him, noticing for the first time that the bar was almost empty.

"Miss, we're closing soon." He said to her softly.

She shock her head slightly to clear it. "What time is it?"

"It's almost two."

"Oh, thank you." She stood in a dazed sort of fashion, and headed to the door.

"Miss," His voice stopped her before she could open the door. "Ion asked me to give you this." He walked to her, and handed her the small velvet bag that contained her money. Her eyes widened and she thanked the man before heading out into the street.

She pulled on the string, and a paper fell to the ground. Curious, she picked it up and read the words scribbled hastily onto it. "_Please, Esther, don't do this to me. I've made my choices, and I need to help Abel. I can't take your money. Please go back home. I'll find you someday._"

She chocked back the sob forming a knot in her throat, and reread the note, just to make sure that she didn't miss anything. He wasn't coming back. Not for a long time.

* * *

A/N: So, there's chapter one. Personally, I think it turned out really good, but I'd really appreciate some feedback. I know that I added a few modern day things, because I'm not entirely clear on the limitations of their technology. It _is_ in the future, but it reminds me of the past. If you see any mistakes, feel free to point them out. It also takes place after the last episode, so if you're new to Trinity Blood, you might be a bit confused. Feel free to write me if you have any questions. Thank you for reading! (The next chapter should be up within a few days!) 

Meanings:  
Purple Hyachinth-Please forgive me. (Each flower has a meaning, and different one will be the title for each chapter.)  
La strada del Prete-Street of the Priest in Italian (How original, right?)  
Euro-Currency of Italy  
More strange words will be coming in later. There's alot of Italian, German, and Latin words in this series.

Disclaimer: Trinity Blood and all of its characters belong to their respectable owners. I am blessed to even be allowed to bask in its greatness, let alone write stories about it.


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